Cardinal Hollerich: Altar serving is ‘a service to God and others’
Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich speaks to Vatican News about the International Altar Servers Pilgrimage, which brings 50,000 young people to Rome this week.
By Joseph Tulloch and Marie Duhamel
This week, around 50,000 altar boys are travelling to Rome as part of a pilgrimage organised by the International Association of Altar Boys (Coetus Internationalis Ministry).
The pilgrimage, which will take place from July 29 to August 3, will see participants visit the four papal basilicas in Rome and meet Pope Francis during a special audience in St. Peter’s Square.
The majority of the choirboys present – around 35,000 – come from Germany, but there will also be participants from other European countries, including Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia and Ukraine.
Throughout the week, the pilgrims will be accompanied by Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, Archbishop of Luxembourg, who spoke to Marie Duhmael of Vatican News.
Serve God, Serve Others
The cardinal began by emphasizing that the theme of the pilgrimage is “With you” (Is 41:10).
“This ‘you’,” said Cardinal Hollerich, “is first of all God: Christ, whom we serve in the liturgy.”
But the word also extends to the “group of friends” who make the pilgrimage together. “This ‘you’ must have a broader meaning,” the cardinal said, “because we cannot serve Christ without serving our brothers and sisters.”
Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich
Fight against bullying
In this regard, Cardinal Hollerich said that bullying is a particularly important issue for altar servers to address, given that they are mostly teenagers. He stressed that the Internet has transformed bullying into “something horrible.”
Altar servers, he said, “should never bully, but always be on the side of the weakest in their class or workplace.”
The cardinal then concluded the interview by discussing the upcoming meeting of pilgrims with Pope Francis, which will see 50,000 people gather in St. Peter’s Square.
This meeting, Cardinal Hollerich said, would be a moment to “listen to the witness of the Pope and be encouraged by him to live this service at the altar, this service to our sisters and brothers throughout the world.”
You can find a longer interview in French on this topic with the Cardinal here.
